Qualcomm is beefing up its offerings in chipsets and wireless modems for IoT devices, says Business Insider "The new 9205 series of LTE modems will provide companies building IoT devices with a chip design that will enable various types of connectivity at a lower cost than prior generations" added BI. Reference Link

Qualcomm's (QCOM) general counsel, speaking in an interview on Bloomberg TV, said the company is seeking to extend the ban in China to new iPhones, but is open to a negotiated settlement with Apple (AAPL), according to headlines from the interview being published by the news service.

Akoustis initiated with a Buy at Craig-Hallum. Craig-Hallum analyst Anthony Stoss started Akoustis (AKTS) with a Buy rating and $8 price target. The analyst notes that the company sits in a "unique position" with BAW filters designed with a proprietary single crystal structure. Its filters offer superior performance at higher frequencies than the two dominant players - Broadcom (AVGO) and Qorvo (QRVO) - as they can handle higher power, have better acoustic performance, transfer heat out much faster, and are 23-times smaller. Stoss believes these characteristics will allow Akoustis to penetrate three enormous markets in a meaningful way.

Qualcomm (QCOM) thinks Apple (AAPL) is still in violation of a Chinese court's orders to stop selling iPhones despite a software update that Apple made, according to Reuters. Qualcomm won a preliminary court order earlier this month in China that banned Apple from selling some older iPhone models that were in violation of two Qualcomm software patents. Apple responded by saying that all of its phones remained on sale in China, but updated the software on its iPhones to leave no doubt. Qualcomm concludes that Apple is still in violation because Apple continues to sell phones without an explicit order from the Chinese court that allows it to. Reference Link

The lead attorney for a group of Apple (AAPL) assemblers, including Hon Hai Precision Industry (HNHPF), Pegatron, Wistron and Compal Electronics, said the manufacturers, which are seeking at least $9B in damages from Qualcomm (QCOM), are not in settlement discussions with the chip supplier and are "gearing up and heading toward trial" in April, Reuters reports, citing the attorney. The contract manufacturers filed claims against Qualcomm, which recently won a preliminary victory in a patent lawsuit in China that would have banned sales of certain iPhones, alleging the company's practice of charging for chips as well as asking for a portion of the adjusted selling price of a phone as a patent royalty payment constitutes an anticompetitive business practice. Reference Link

Apple (AAPL) has considered shifting production of older iPhones to Pegatron, which is exempt from the ban ordered by a Chinese court due to its finding that the iPhone maker had infringed two of Qualcomm's (QCOM) software patents, according to the Nikkei Asian Review. Pegatron has an exemption because the company, on behalf of Apple, paid a fee to license the contested software, unlike Apple's other major assemblers Foxconn and Wistron, the report explained. Apple has held initial talks with Pegatron about whether the company could take on more iPhone production, but no decision has yet been made, the Nikkei added. Reference Link

Apple (AAPL) will put out a software update for Chinese iPhone users early next week in an effort to modify functions that court ruled infringed on a pair of Qualcomm (QCOM) contracts, Bloomberg reports, citing the company. The tech giant said it decided to make the move to ensure it complies fully with the ruling, which led to sales injunctions against six older models of Apple's iPhone, and the planned update will address features which involve adjusting photos and managing apps through a touchscreen. Reference Link

Qualcomm and VinSmart, a wholly owned subsidiary of Vingroup, announced they have entered into a Patent Licensing Agreement which covers multimode complete terminals. Under the terms of the Agreement, Qualcomm has granted VinSmart a royalty-bearing patent license to develop, manufacture and sell branded multimode complete terminals such as 4G/5G smartphones. The royalties payable by VinSmart are consistent with the terms of Qualcomm's branded multimode licensing framework disclosed this past year.